So it’s almost time for back to school. You’ve organized the school supplies. You’ve gotten the back to school clothes, or you’ve dug in the closet to find them. You have it all planned out, or else you’re giggling madly in denial at this post right now. La, la, la – I can’t hear you, you say. Organizing? Back to school? What’s that?
On Pinterest lately there have been a number of wonderful little ideas for back to school organizing. One area of our home that gets very messy at the end of the day is the entryway. The entryway is where things go to get dumped. Bags and other items sit there, stewing in a mass of other bags, socks, rain jackets, and other sundry items.
The mudroom or entryway is key to back to school organizing. When kids come home from school, they can have a hard time putting things away if they’re not sure what to do with them. Forms have a hard time getting signed if you never see them. These ideas are to help those forms get signed, lunches get made, and kids get clothed and out the door.
Here are a few organizing ideas for that entryway space to make your life just a little bit easier:
Have a drop off area for keys and other small items that are easy to lose. Ours is one part of a plant stand, which has a small shelf that’s just the right size for depositing small items. Put them here and reduce the rush the next morning.
Have a hanger for each child’s backpack and clothes. If you’re really organized, place homework charts, to do lists, and notes on a board above the backpack.
Store items in baskets underneath a bench in the entryway. We have an “outgoing stuff” area for each person in our family.
Use clipboards, spice racks, or other small shelves to create a place to store forms. All forms go here when they come home, and they are signed and return to school from this area as well.
Make a place in the fridge specifically for finished lunches or for lunch-making items. That way, everyone knows where to find the food they need to make their lunches, and everyone knows what’s available so they don’t eat the food that’s ready for dinner tomorrow.
What organizing techniques do you use to sort the kids’ school items?
Image Credit: cienpies.net